Winnebago Man Sentenced for Domestic Assault by an Habitual Offender

United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Lawrence S. Bassette, age 40, of Winnebago, Nebraska, was sentenced November 13, 2024, in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska, for domestic assault by an habitual offender in Indian Country. United States District Court Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Bassette to 21 months' imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Bassette's release from prison, he will begin a 3-year term of supervised release.

In December 2022, Bassette assaulted an elderly male victim known to him by punching the victim multiple times with a closed fist. During the ensuing scuffle, an elderly female was also injured. Prior to his assault on the victim in December 2022, Bassette had already been convicted on multiple occasions of domestic violence offenses in federal and tribal courts.

This case was prosecuted in federal court because the offense was a felony and occurred on the Winnebago Indian Reservation in Nebraska.

This case was investigated by <_w3a_listitem listvalue="[CHOOSE AN AGENCY]" datavalue="[CHOOSE AN AGENCY]"><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. " datavalue="the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. "><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Drug Enforcement Administration." datavalue="the Drug Enforcement Administration."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Federal Bureau of Investigation." datavalue="the Federal Bureau of Investigation."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Department of Homeland Security." datavalue="the Department of Homeland Security."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="Homeland Security Investigations." datavalue="Homeland Security Investigations."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="Immigration and Customs Enforcement." datavalue="Immigration and Customs Enforcement."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Internal Revenue Service." datavalue="the Internal Revenue Service."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="IRS Criminal Investigations." datavalue="IRS Criminal Investigations."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Lincoln/Lancaster County Drug Task Force. " datavalue="the Lincoln/Lancaster County Drug Task Force. "><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Lincoln Police Department." datavalue="the Lincoln Police Department."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Nebraska State Patrol." datavalue="the Nebraska State Patrol."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Omaha FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force" datavalue="the Omaha FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force"><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Omaha Police Department." datavalue="the Omaha Police Department."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the Postal Inspection Service." datavalue="the Postal Inspection Service."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="the U.S. Secret Service." datavalue="the U.S. Secret Service.">the Federal Bureau of Investigation.